


What We Do

by VerityJade



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Fluff, M/M, Multi, Online Dating, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-09
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:06:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 17,120
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27980478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VerityJade/pseuds/VerityJade
Summary: Sakura is in her last year of undergrad and is left jaded after her last relationship.  Ino has other ideas for her best friends last year at Konoha U, Sakura just doesn't know it yet.
Relationships: Haruno Sakura/Hatake Kakashi
Comments: 17
Kudos: 51





	1. Chapter 1

Sakura yawned and stretched across her bed, the sun wasn’t even up yet but her body woke her up just the same. It was the first day of classes and she just couldn’t help her excitement. She grabbed her phone and went through her morning plan: gym, shower, breakfast, class at 9. It was her last year at the university for her undergraduate program and she was more than ready to graduate and move. 

She had done the entire “college” experience and was over it. The sorority was too much work but Ino had insisted that they join one together when she found out they were accepted to the same college. Sakura kept reminding Ino that she was in school to learn not to party but Ino would have none of it. She felt that Sakura would never take her nose out of a book if she was left to her own devices and made sure that her friend got a chance to live a little. It was all well and good until they both saw Sasuke Uchiha.

Sakura groaned and got out of bed, the last thing she wanted to think about was Sasuke on the start of term. Shaking her head she set her coffee to brew and went about her morning routine. That was THE biggest mistake of her life, overly distracting and out of character, and something she had decided was not worth it. She was done with relationships while she was busy building her career.

Her phone chimed just as she was done adding the sugar to her mug. 

INO: Buzz me up bitch.

Sakura rolled her eyes as she walked to her door and hit the button. She unlocked her front door and walked back to her kitchen to finish her coffee. Ino barged in completely ignoring that it was 530 in the morning and the other people in the building probably wanted to sleep.

“You better be ready to go, you insisted on the 6am kick boxing class, which is far too early,” Ino complained as she walked in and grabbed the coffee Saukra was holding.

Sakura shook her head, “I recall you saying to hold you accountable this year, so here we are, and you’re welcome for the coffee, Pig,” she smirked as she grabbed another mug from behind her. Ino choked on her hot coffee, “WTF! I told you NOT to call me that, we are grown ass women. Rude. We’ll see who is smirking after I kick your ass in class,” she said as she flounced out the front door.

~~~

The class ended up being singles, no sparring, so Ino did not get to claim a win. If anything their instructor kicked everyone’s ass, which Sakura should have expected because Tenten was the best instructor the university gym had. They all sat outside the cafe enjoying breakfast and comparing schedules. Tenten had also gone to highschool with them and it was nice to catch up. Ino kept going on and on about her design courses to the point that Sakura had entirely checked out of their conversation. She didn’t care about fashion or design at all and Ino tended to monopolize the conversation. She glanced at Tenten and smiled, she knew their friend was only being polite, she was there on an athletic scholarship and didn’t care about anything other than training.

She was scrolling through her phone again, more lists for her schedule and which books she needed to check out of the library for extra reading when she felt a fry hit her face. She looked up, “What?”

Ino shook her head, “See what I mean? She’s always on her phone or reading, when was the last time you went out to the club?”

All eyes were on Sakura as she put her phone in her bag slowly, clearly avoiding the question. “I’ve been busy. Grad school for my program is really competitive and after I slacked off last semester I just don’t have time to waste,” she finally said a little defensively.

Ino softened her expression a little. She knew the last term was hard on them both. They had spent most of it at odds with one another, Sakura had moved out of the sorority house entirely only participating on mandatory events. Their fight over Sasuke’s attention had almost ruined their lifetime of friendship. “Hey, I know last term was rough, but the house is having its welcome back night on Friday and I really think you should come. You’re still a senior member on the committee, come plan with me, it will look great on those applications,” she begged.

“Fine. I have some free time on Wednesday if you want to meet up after my afternoon class,” Sakura agreed as she stood up. “I need to run by the bookstore and check their back orders again. See you guys!”

Ino looked over to Tenten, “So how are things with Lee?”

Tenten just laughed, “You really can’t help yourself can you? Got to have the latest gossip. We are fine, if you must know, he comes back in town just in time for the party Friday so you’ll see us there. How are you and Sai?”

Ino blushed, “Its still new and we are taking things slow. Its different, but I like it. I just wish things had turned out differently for Sakura.”

“We knew Uchiha was trash. Well, everyone did but you two. Man, I can’t even say he was trash, he just had a different plan and told her up front. I feel bad that she didn’t listen and thought she could change his mind, but that’s how it goes,” Tenten stated as blunt as ever.

“Not everyone is as cool about distance as you and Lee. I know he said he was leaving after he graduated, what he didn’t tell us is that he was being made a partner in the family business and was already matched with someone. He totally lied about being single, that’s trash,” Ino argued. 

Tenten just sighed knowing it wasn’t worth the fight. “Hey, I’ll see you Friday night, my next class starts soon and I need to get the bikes set up,” she said as she got up and pushed her chair in. “Later.”

Ino sat back in her chair, brooding once again on the disaster that was Sasuke. She felt bad for him, his family had just had an embarrassing scandal all over the news, his brother had suddenly dropped out leaving him alone, she knew he was under a lot of pressure. It was just inexcusable that he lead them on though, he played her and Sakura against each other and in the end hadn’t even had the decency to tell them to their faces that the entire time he was playing them he’d been engaged. She slammed her chair in a little harder than she meant to and scared off some crows from the next table. 

She was done with Sasuke and had moved on, but Sakura was still having a hard time. Ino was so thankful that they were able to mend their friendship but she wanted Sakura to find at least a little happiness this year. Her phone buzzed, it was the house with more questions about Friday. This party would be one to remember, and she would make sure of it.


	2. Chapter 2

Sakura flopped down on her bed. It was past midnight and she was exhausted after her first day back. Arching her back she reached under herself to grab her phone from her back pocket, she hadn’t anticipated being home so late and wanted to check what her day looked like for tomorrow. She was due in the library at 7 for her shift but didn’t have a class until 5. Swiping her schedule away so noticed that she had ten missed calls from Ino and more texts than she cared to answer. Rolling her eyes she clicked open the text messages.

INO: WHy arent you answering my CALLS!!!???

INO: I’ve died like three times here, pick up!!!

Each text became more and more dramatic as time passed, pictures were later included to show Ino laying on her bed in mock death. Sakura shook her head, the last missed text was about 20 minutes ago so she decided to go ahead and call Ino back.

“YOU BITCH!!!” yelled Ino as she answered the call. “You’ve been ignoring me all day! This party isn’t going to plan itself and you said you’d help,” she pouted.

“I’m sorry, you knew my day was busy, I had two classes and a shift at the library. We can’t all be in online classes, Ino, I have labs too,” Sakura reminded her.

“Fine. Is that hot lab tech there again?” Ino asked trying to sound both interested and as if it didn’t matter.

“Who?” Sakura asked, pretending to have forgotten Ino’s massive crush on Shikamaru their Sophomore year. 

“You remember, Shika, oh wait, he graduated last year too,” she said.

“Yup, lots of people graduated last year Ino,” Sakura replied briskly.

“It’s been all summer Sakura, you’ve been holed up in that apartment, why don’t you move back to the house? We promised we wouldn’t let a guy come between us again, I want it to be like it was, I miss you being here,” Ino confessed.

Sakura laid back down on her bed and stared at the ceiling. “It isn’t that simple Ino, I have applications due soon, my job, and a full load this term. I have to focus on school. The sorority was fun at the start but it became a huge distraction. And I know you’re good with Sai, I’m really happy for you, I just don’t have time for something like that right now.”

“You don’t have time or you don’t want to make time?” Ino challenged. “I think you’re just scared of putting yourself out there and getting burned again. And before you say anything, I know, its hard, but that situation before was dumb for both of us, what if you found someone that complimented you? Why shut down all possibility?”

Sakura didn’t have anything to say to that. She and Ino had fought hard over Sasuke’s attention, it was embarrassing to think of their fights over him and the lengths they would go to to try and hold his attention. He had told both of them that he wasn’t looking for a relationship, it was his last year and then he’d be moving back to the city to work for his Father. They had instead took it as a challenge, each one sure that they would be the one to sway him if they could just do that one right thing to win him over. Ino had lasted until Winter term ended, Sasuke had invited Sakura on vacation with him and she felt like that was it. Sakura had moved out over finals weekend and they didn’t speak again til the day of his graduation. Ino had knocked on Sakura’s door that morning while she was getting ready to go meet him before all the graduates had to meet up. Ino had a newspaper clipping showing the announcements, front and center was a photo of Sasuke and another woman. It was clearly announcing his engagement to someone that wasn’t either of them. Sakura had been completely crushed.

She shook her head trying to clear that memory. “Like I said, Ino, I’m really happy for you, I just. Can’t. Right now.”

Ino sighed, “Fine, I’ll drop it, for tonight. What time on Wednesday? I’ve honestly got most of this done, I just need you to look it over and make sure everything is final and good. It shouldn’t take longer than an hour, I know you’re busy.”

“Ino. Don’t be like that. I switched my work hours around so after my class I’m free the whole night. Why don’t you come stay over? We can finalize everything then and you can help me pick out an outfit?” Sakura knew exactly what to say to win her over.

“Deal, but only if you make sure to show up early on Friday so I can do your hair and makeup! Just because you aren’t lookin doesn’t mean other people won’t be looking at you!” Ino said with a smile on her face and then hung up before Sakura could reply.

It was now nearly 1am and Sakura hadn’t set up anything like she usually did. Sighing she went to her closet and got out her clothes for the next day, simple to start because she was at the library. Grabbing her gym bag she traded out the dirty kick boxing clothes for yoga shorts and a sports bra, then made a mental note to grab a towel for her mat. After the whole Sasuke bullshit she had thrown herself into working out, she had taken extra classes over the summer and made sure she attended at least one gym class during the school week. At first, it had just been to keep herself occupied so she wouldn’t sit in her apartment alone and eat large sums of whatever comfort food she craved that day, but after a while she realized she needed it to manage anxiety she didn’t realize she had. Ino had always said she had a quick temper, perhaps there was something to that idea, either way, working out was now a non negotiable part of her day.

As she programed her coffee to brew in the morning she glanced at her calendar one more time. It had been almost four months since that bombshell of a photo had been thrown in her face. In that moment she had never hated Ino more, but she realized her friend hadn’t meant it in a spiteful manner, she wanted to save her. Sasuke didn’t even say anything when she shoved the photo in his face rather than sit down at the diner. He’d looked up at her and just sighed. She’d screamed at him, “What the fuck is this?!” He sat his fork down and looked at her calmly, “What do you want me to say, Sakura? I think the article says it all.” She’d slapped him and left in a cold rage. It wasn’t until she locked her door behind her that she sank into the floor and cried.

She had felt so mature last year, her own apartment, straight A’s, volunteer work and her library job. It was everything she had dreamed of when he asked her to go on vacation over the Winter holiday, a couples trip with his friends to a ski resort. Sakura had all sorts of romantic ideas of cuddling in front of the fire, or fun evenings in the cabins hot tub. She never told Ino, but the trip hadn’t actually been that fun. Sasuke spent all his time on the slopes with his friend, Naruto, and left her to hang out with Naruto’s girlfriend, Hinata. The girl was nice, extremely quiet, but not who she wanted to spend her break with. After they got back, she had mostly assumed that they were dating given the trip. Her cheeks burned just remembering how foolish she felt after everything.

She didn’t see how Ino could just expect her to date someone now. What if they asked about her past relationships? Sakura was not looking forward to looking like a crazy not even ex girlfriend, she shuddered at the thought. It was much easier to just focus on herself, so what if she spent more time in the library than most of the actual staff? She was on track to graduate with honors, Valedictorian if she continued the way she was. Having whatever it was she had with Sasuke that last term did nothing but add stress to her already overworked schedule, having to plan and plead with him to hang out, having to act like everything was great when it wasn’t was exhausting in a not satisfying way. Sakura hadn’t actually had any prior long relationships, some meet ups for coffee in her senior year of high school, an awkward prom date, nothing really showing her that having someone else in her life like that was worth it right now. 

She tucked herself into bed fully planning to tell Ino to shove her relationship dreams for Sakura out the window. She didn’t need a boyfriend, she certainly didn’t need someone she needed to hound to see, someone she had to make all the plans for, or someone that she never knew if they really wanted her around anyway. Relationships were nothing but unnecessary drama and she would have no part of it. She made the mental note to text Ino that, right after she remembered to put that towel in her gym bag.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm having lots of fun writing this! I just can't wait til Wednesday to put out the next chapter. I think I'm going to just keep them short because its easier for me to write in short spurts currently. So, let me know what you think! I already have Chapter 3 ready to go next Wednesday too :)


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kakashi teaser in this chapter! <3

Sakura sat with her back to the room concentrating on making sure her highlighter was going in a straight line when a shadow fell over her page, it was Ino, because of course it was. She looked up at her friend and slowly took her headphones off, “You know I’m trying to study here. I have to start figuring out what my thesis is going to be on and I have an appointment in an hour with my Aunt. I didn’t text you back on purpose.”

“Rude. Listen, I know you’re busy making that forehead of yours even bigger, but we have a problem,” Ino said while sliding into the chair next to Sakura.

“Like a life or death issue or something mildly inconvenient that could have waited?” Sakura asked sarcastically while not giving Ino the satisfaction of rising to her taunt.

Ino stared at her, “It's the latter. BUT. I really need that big brain of yours to figure it out now so it doesn’t create an issue later on. You know how good you are at coming up with easy solutions.”

Sakura glared at her attempt to suck up. “Really? Fine, what is your issue? I was pretty much done with this chapter anyway.”

Ino smiled, “Well, its not really just my issue, its the house. The board had elected someone to be in charge of the funds over the summer for the new school year and I guess she decided not to show. We have to turn in our dues today…or we lose the house.”

“What! That’s not a small problem, Ino!” Sakura whisper yelled at her, they were in a library after all.

“I know, but you do have that meeting with your Aunt…and you could just take the envelope and hand it to her personally…” Ino trailed off suggestively.

Sakura frowned, “You know I dislike using my connections, it feels like cheating.”

“I know, Sakura, and trust me I normally wouldn’t ask, but this IS important. If you still lived at the house you know things like this wouldn’t happen. You’re so much better at keeping things organized than the entire board is. I mean, I get it, but could you please turn this in for us?” Ino asked.

“Fine. But what are you going to tell them about how it got taken care of? You know I don’t want anyone to know,” Sakura replied taking the envelope from Ino.

“I’ll just tell them I asked nicely. They don’t honestly care as long as it gets done. But, they know I’m persuasive so they won’t think about it too much,” Ino smiled. “Tell Tsunade she’s more than welcome to come on Friday,” she said with a wink, “Thanks again, Sakura! See you tomorrow!”

Sakura rolled her eyes. Ino could have just turned the money in on her own, it truly wasn’t needed for Sakura to personally hand it off to Tsunade, but as she said of herself, Ino WAS persuasive. Sighing, she slowly started putting her books into her satchel before making sure all her markers had the right caps and that they were secure. She pulled her phone out to check her schedule again, she would be missing her regular yoga class for this meeting but it was important to nail down her proposal. 

She had woken up in a panic that morning that she was unprepared for her Friday honors class and immediately called Tsunade who talked her down. It wasn’t even that she felt unprepared, she felt like a fraud, like she didn’t belong in college ready to graduate later that year. Sakura felt like she knew next to nothing, that she would be a fool in the committee defending her thesis, and that they would laugh her out of the room and the school. Tsunade suggested she switch to decaf and do more yoga…well, that wasn’t exactly what the woman had said. Sakura blushed as she walked out of the library recalling what was said and she did not agree. Why was everyone so hung up on her love life?

~~~

Tsunade, as it turned out, loved her thesis proposal. She thought it would be wildly interesting to look at the aspects of behavior, whether or not a person learned self control through parental cues during growth or if it were in fact part of our genetic function. “That is the question isn’t it, Sakura? Nature or nurture. Why do we fundamentally do what we do? I think you have a good idea, I also think that research could take you through your Masters as well if you stick to it,” she paused, “Your parents would have been so proud of you,” she said gently.

Sakura had lost her parents her Junior year of high school. Tsunade had been a part of her life since Freshman year when she had asked the prestigious Doctor to be her mentor. She’d shown up in her office and asked to shadow her refusing to take “NO” for an answer. Tsunade had been impressed with Sakuras’ drive then and continued to be proud of the woman she had grown up to be. After she got the news of the Harunos’ passing she had insisted that Sakura let her step in and be more than just a mentor, more than just the friends they had grown to be. So she was now affectionately called “Aunt” while she continued to care for Sakura. 

It had been a funny coincidence that Tsunade had taken over the Science department at Konoha University the year after Sakura was accepted to the school. They both knew that she hadn’t helped Sakura with her schooling in any capacity other than a mentor but Sakura was terrified that if people knew they were close they would say she hadn’t earned her spot. She hadn’t even had Tsunade write her a letter of recommendation wanting to get into University on her own. Tsunade knew that Sakura wasn’t using her but let her do things her own way. Sakura had been accepted to Konoha U on a full scholarship, work study, grants for her living, all on her own and Tsunade was as proud of her as she would have been her own child.

“Ino also wanted to know if you could take the house due money to finance? She claimed the girl they’d elected to do it didn’t show, but I have a feeling they were late and just forgot,” Sakura said while fishing the envelope out of her bag, “She also wanted me to let you know you’re more than welcome to come to the welcome back house party on Friday.”

“Oh? A welcome back party? We haven’t even finished the first week back and she’s already planned a party?” Tsunade asked a smile in her tone. “That girl would have a party every day if she could, and of course I’ll make sure this is handled,” she said taking the money from her. “Anything for my Delta Rho girls,” she laughed.

“Thanks Tsunade, you know I wouldn’t have asked but it was last minute. I told Ino not to do it again,” Sakura said getting up.

“Sakura, it isn’t a problem, really. But, I think the better question before you leave is are you feeling better?” Tsunade asked.

Sakura paused. Was she? “I feel more confident with my proposal for Friday,” she responded, slightly evading the point of the question.

“Cut the bullshit,” Tsunade said flat out, “I know you’re still upset about that Uchiha boy and its affecting your life more than it should. I agree with Ino, you need to put yourself out there more.”

Sakura frowned, that was rich coming from the woman who pinned over that English professor who ghost wrote all those smutty romance novels but would never admit it. “I’m going on Friday, what more do you two want?” Sakura said exasperated, “Are you two gossiping about it on the side?”

Tsunade smiled at her, “Going on Friday is a start. I think you should think more about your thesis and how it directly relates to your life a little more, maybe coming up with that has more of a direct meaning to you that your subconscious is trying to tell you?” she paused for effect, “How does that make you feel?”

“Yea ok. Don’t shrink me, that isn’t even your job,” Sakura laughed to hide her discomfort in the question, “I’m going to be late, had to pick a different class today. Do you know Hatake?”

“Oh, going for some ‘hot’ yoga this afternoon?” Tsunade grinned, her eyebrows raising suggestively.

“Oh my god, grow up! I’ll see you later,” Sakura was pink as she hurried out of the office.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Posting a little early, and also a slightly longer chapter :) I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday weekend! Enjoy!

Sakura left the academic buildings in a hurry, her cheeks still burning at Tsunades’ comment. It was a little bit of a walk across the campus to the University gym so she had plenty of time alone with her thoughts. She did not want to be alone with her thoughts. They changed daily, hourly sometimes, as to how she felt about her situation. If she wasn’t berating herself on throwing herself at Sasuke, she was instead chanting that she was a strong and independent woman who did not need a man. A small part of her would pipe up that while she didn’t need one, sometimes they had benefits…

As she came up to the crosswalk she felt a vibration in her back pocket, sighing she took out her phone to check the text message.

INO: DId you invite Tsunade to the party???

Rolling her eyes she quickly typed back: Are you two talking about me behind my back?

… … …

“You’re going to miss the light,” a soft voice said, the person it was attached to walked up next to her and pointed at the crosswalk light glowing with the countdown.

“What? OH! Thanks!” Sakura replied. She hadn’t noticed it had changed while she was waiting for Ino to text back. Ino was going to get an ear full about plotting, gossiping, and minding her own damn business. The stranger was heading toward the gym she noticed as she fell into pace behind him. Sakura was still too irritated at Ino to really pay attention to him, other than wonder why someone would be wearing a scarf when it was such a nice day out.

It was bad enough that her inner voice kept hounding about how nice it would be to have a man around, she didn’t need her best friend to be ganging up on her with Tsunade of all people. Sakura mentally put her foot down, she was content with her classes, her job, and her study time. Her inner voice was a little bit of a sass master and ignored her, instead offering a final thought as she walked up to the gym doors, is “content” enough? Wouldn’t life be better being lived instead of hiding behind a safe routine?

Sakura thanked the man as he held the door for her and made her way to the locker room to change. Her normal yoga class was just that, normal. She’d never been to a hot yoga class and was a little nervous at doing something new. She just wanted to relax and not stress about if she was going to make a fool of herself. As she walked back out to the main gym she was shocked that it was pouring outside. The entire gym that was usually bright because the walls were almost entirely windows, was instead eerily lit by just the lights for a change. The rain was pounding on the glass and making a roaring noise echo across the building.

She sighed and wandered over to the room that was used for yoga and started to get set up. The lights were always less bright in there because the rooms for classes had actual walls with smaller windows near the ceiling. Sakura sat down on her mat and looked up at the clock, class was supposed to have started a minute ago but their instructor was no where to be seen. She noticed that the few other people in the class didn’t appear to be annoyed or concerned by his absence. She frowned wondering if this meant that class would go over.

The door behind her opened and she turned around to look at who it was when all the lights in the room went out. She gasped as her eyes slowly started to adjust to the small room being lit by the few windows at the ceiling. The bodies around her had stood up when the door opened so it was safe to assume that it was their instructor who had entered. She could only make out the shapes from the others in the room and it was disconcerting. Her anxiety was rising, not only was she in a new class, but now she would have to do said new class in the dark. She was about to just grab her mat and leave, letting her fear get the best of her, when he spoke.

“Sorry I’m late, I ran into a little bird that lost its way.”

Sakuras’ hand stopped at her towel, she recognized the voice as the strangers that had spoken to her at the crosswalk. She looked up at him and noticed he was looking in her direction. She blushed, suddenly grateful that it was dark in the room. Inner Sakura jumped into action, wtf is he talking about??? One, you aren’t a little bird, and two, you were 15 minutes early so why was he late??? Sakura internally rolled her eyes at herself but conceded that she wasn’t a bird and he probably wasn’t even talking about her.

“I figured we would take the weather to class today and really focus on ourselves. I turned the lights out so we can be fully present and acknowledge every position with purpose. Let’s begin the warm up,” he said as he sat down cross legged on his mat in the front.

Everyone followed. Sakura decided to stay, crossing her legs and listening to his soft voice guide them through stretching. The rain continued to pound the building, she had to really concentrate to actually hear him over the storm. He taught the class in a measured pace, calmly describing the movements and where they should feel a stretch, how they should breathe. They’d already gone through several poses when she realized that his voice was moving closer to her, when had he started moving around the class?

“Your leg should be straight, arm holding and pulling it toward you, gaze ahead,” he said as he guided them into a pose she thought was bow.

She could feel the sweat dripping off her face and she struggled to keep her hand on her leg. It was such a rookie mistake to have lotion on before going to hot yoga, Sakura could not believe she’d been so dumb.

“I think you can get your leg up a little higher, may I touch you?” he said in a low voice somewhere behind her head.

Her face flamed again as she replied, “Uh, sure.”

She felt his hand enclose hers to more securely wrap around her shin and pull her toes to point at the ceiling. He leaned down again, close enough that she could feel his breath as he spoke, “Better?”

She closed her eyes and nodded, having to use all her concentration to not fall over while she balanced on one leg. When she opened them she couldn’t sense him near her and she exhaled the breath she hadn’t realized she was holding. The rest of the class he continued to walk around and provide small instruction to those who needed it, correcting and explaining here and there. The storm had somehow picked up even more, lightening was occasionally flashing across the room illuminating it in the mirrors on the wall. They were on their last set of poses and her brain had reduced itself to a hum, no thoughts, just listening to the drone of the rain and thunder with his calming voice guiding her along.

“Just lie back, legs straight, arms at ease, and breathe in and out. Close your eyes and let yourself relax, with each breath let go of whatever tension is left in your neck, then your shoulders. Feel it ease out of your back, slowly travel down your legs. You should feel calm and peaceful,” he slowly instructed them through their last movement, “Take your time, feel the release, and I’ll see you all Thursday.”

Sakura heard the door near her open and close as she lay on her back. Her brain was still just a low buzz, she could hear her heart beating as she stayed down on the mat. She could still hear his voice instructing her to breathe and release the tension and as she did so she realized she was crying. She went to move wanting to wipe her tears away and her arm seemed heavy. She sat up awkwardly, grabbing her towel she wiped her face not entirely sure why she was crying. As she got up she realized that this was the first time in a long time that she actually felt empty and somewhat at peace. 

~~~

The pleasantly empty feeling in her brain lasted until she got out to the parking lot and saw how wet everything was. It was normal this time of year for the afternoon thunderstorms but she just hadn’t expected one today and had worn the wrong shoes. It was going to be a pain walking all the way back to her apartment in flip flops. She looked at her phone thinking to call Ino for a ride, but it was the wrong time as her friend was in a class at the moment. Sighing, she walked out and started toward the library, figuring she may as well check out her study material now because she was already on campus and she had back to back classes that night.

“You need a ride?” he asked.

Sakura jumped and squeaked a little, she hadn’t heard him walk up behind her fully distracted in her thoughts. “Oh, uh…” Turning she saw it was the scarf wearing yoga instructor, Hatake, first name still unknown. “Sure?”

“That really didn’t sound convincing,” he chuckled.

She paused trying to stop herself from sounding like a moron, “I just thought you walked too…the crosswalk and all.”

“Oh, no, I knew it was going to rain and parked my bike in the garage,” he said as he motioned toward to large parking garage to their left. “So, do you want a ride?”

Her head spun, a bike? She was not a fan of motorcycles, the thought of riding one for the first time with someone she didn’t actually know was making her anxiety climb. Glancing around at the flooded sidewalks she realized she was taking too much time to reply and it was bordering on awkward. “I’ve never been on a bike,” she said a little to quickly, inwardly cringing at not answering his question.

He laughed, “Ok, nervous, I get that. I have an extra helmet and I’ll be going slow because its wet, come on,” he motioned for her to follow. “Why don’t you just check it out? No pressure.”

Sakura nodded and fell into step next to him. “I’m Sakura, by the way, thanks for the offer.”

He looked down at her, “Kakashi.”

First name, now known. Kakashi Hatake. Face still a mystery. It was too dark to see in the yoga studio when he didn’t have the scarf on and her curiosity was peaked. Buck teeth? Weird lips? The rest of his head looked normal, if silver hair that floofed unnaturally was considered normal. She was lost in her head again when she also lost a flip flop to the flooded walkway and stumbled.

“Fuck!” she screeched, flailing on her lost balance.

She grabbed him without even thinking, just not wanting to land in the muddy water. He helped steady her and reached down to grab her traitorous shoe that was floating away. 

“Sorry,” she blushed taking the shoe he handed her and leaning down to just take the other one off before she fell for real and put them both in her backpack.

“You good?” he asked with a smile in his tone.

Sakura nodded, and they continued to the parking garage in silence.

His bike was by the entrance. Lime green, very bright, and she could tell it probably went very fast. 

He turned toward her, a slight blush showing over his scarf, “I kinda lied. I don’t have an extra helmet, but you can wear mine and I’ll go really slow.”

“Oh, it really isn’t a big deal, I needed to go by the library anyway before I went home. I can’t ask you to taxi me all over the place. I’m sure you have other things to do,” Sakura said just staring at the bike, “I really do appreciate the offer though.”

“Well, at least let me drop you off at the library?” he offered the helmet to her.

Sakura hesitated, then nodded and took the helmet, “If you’re sure it isn’t too much trouble, thanks.”

His eyes crinkled in a smile, “Not at all.”

Kakashi climbed onto the bike and raised his eyebrows at her, “I don’t bite.”

Sakura took a deep breath and put the helmet on. It was a little big for her and she made sure to tighten the strap. She kept the visor shut to hide how nervous she was as she walked up to the bike. It was a lot bigger than she thought the closer she got to it and tons of scenarios were rushing through her head. What if she smelled bad from sweating in class? What if she fell off? What if he didn’t go slow and she got all wet? What if he turned out to be a creeper? Her inner self would have rolled its eyes had it been able. 

Now on the bike she wasn’t sure what to do. Kakashi turned so he could see her, “Good, you got on just fine, now all you have to do is trust me.” She nodded. Now that they were sitting and he was so close she got a better look at his face, his eyes were a stormy gray color and he looked sincere when he asked her to trust him. He turned back around and started the bike.

“Lean forward and hold on, all you have to do is be fluid,” he said.

She wrapped her arms around him and laid her head on his back. Her heart was pounding so hard she was sure he could feel it.

“Are you ready?” he asked.

Sakura nodded and held her breath waiting for the bike to move.

He slowly backed the bike up in the garage and headed out. She squeezed him tight and let out her breath. He was true to his word and went slowly. The library wasn’t far even walking so they were there within two minutes on his bike. He parked it and waited for her to climb off. Sakura was shaking a little as she unclipped the helmet and handed it to him. “Thanks so much,” she said with a smile.

“You sure you don’t want me to wait for you?” he asked.

“Yea, really, I live off campus. I don’t want to be a bother,” she said.

“I live off campus too, it wouldn’t be a bother or I wouldn’t have asked, but I won’t keep asking or its going to get weird,” he laughed.

“I really do appreciate the offer, my friend should be out of class soon and can give me a ride,” she smiled again, “Thank you, Kakashi.”

“Any time, Sakura,” he said with a wink as he took off the scarf showing off his smile before he slid the helmet on his head.


	5. Chapter 5

“Sakura, I swear, if you don’t give me more details I am going to make your toenails look like they were painted by a toddler!” Ino shrieked. She was holding Sakuras’ foot hostage, demanding answers, clearly unhinged. 

“I don’t know what more you want! He just gave me a ride to the library, there really wasn’t any kind of secret agenda. It rained and was wet and he was being nice, that’s all,” Sakura insisted.

Ino side eyed the response then shrugged and went back to painting. Her lack of fight back after the outburst put Sakura on edge, Ino was not normally one to back down. She waited for her to continue because it was inevitable.

“So, who are you going to bring to the homecoming event?” Ino innocently asked.

Sakura rolled her eyes, there it was. “Ino, that’s not for another two months, how could I possibly be worrying about that?”

“I think you should ask Kakashi more about himself. I can’t believe you didn’t give him your number, especially when he obviously went out of his way for you,” Ino continued while waving the tiny paintbrush in her hand a little too close to Sakuras’ face.

Sakura rolled her eyes, “He did not go out of his way, he insisted, plus the library was on the way out of campus and he said he lived out in town.”

Ino finished drawing the tiny stars on Sakuras big toe and sat back admiring her work. “Are you going to go back tomorrow for another class?” she asked.

“NO!” Sakura practically yelled with no hesitation. Internally, there was actually a lot of hesitation. The hot yoga class had been really good for her mental state, it would be nice to go into her long class stretch on Tuesday night relaxed and ready to listen. She knew that if she said she was going though that Ino would not let up. It wasn’t about Kakashi, it was about yoga and school and studying. Not Kakashi.

Ino blinked at her, “Fine.”

Sakura narrowed her stare, “Okay.”

“Tenten said that he’s in his last year of a graduate program,” Ino continued as if they were actually discussing this.

“Oh my fuck, Ino really? Why are you and Tenten talking about this? It was just a yoga class!” Sakura was clearly exasperated and carefully stomped off to the bathroom. They were not discussing this. As she slammed the door she could hear Ino laughing to herself. Sakura gripped the sink and looked at herself in the mirror before chuckling. She could not take herself seriously with that nose strip on and she slowly peeled it off. The timer in the kitchen beeped letting them know their cookies were done baking. Sakura sighed, she would have to go back out there at some point and deal with Ino. 

“The cookies are done! I’m gonna eat them all if you don’t get back out here!” Ino yelled from the kitchen.

“I hope you burn your tongue, Pig!” Sakura yelled back.

She heard a muffled “Rude” in response that caused her to smile, Ino was already stuffing her face. Sakura took her time washing her face and applying moisturizer before heading back out into the living room. Ino put all the cookies on a large plate in the middle of the coffee table and was busy making them hot chocolate.

“I left the planning binder out for you to look over, but like I said the other day, its mostly done,” Ino said when she heard Sakura sit down.

Sakura grabbed a cookie while she plopped down to look at the binder. She was fairly shocked at how well organized it all was, tabbed sections with quotes and finalized orders. There was even a spreadsheet for volunteers assigning the house girls to different activities for the evening. She smiled remembering when they first applied to the sorority and how everything was a mess. Sakura had overhauled the board meetings and made sure it was all computerized and efficient before she stepped away from living in the house. She was overly pleased to see that Ino had made sure they kept up with it all. Perhaps she was being too harsh on Ino, she knew her friend really did want the best for her.

“I loaded them up with whipped cream,” Ino said as she walked out from the kitchen holding two mugs.

Sakura looked up and smiled, “Ooo thanks!”

“So. How does it look?” Ino asked looking at the binder.

“I’m shocked actually. This looks great, everything is covered, even the clean up schedule. I told you they wouldn’t miss me,” Sakura said.

“It should look great, I was the one that took the time to fill in all those damn spread sheets you’d saved on the system. And I miss you, that should be enough,” Ino pouted at her.

Sakura didn’t want to rehash the moving conversation over again. She actually loved living in an apartment on her own, the house was too loud and constantly busy for her to feel relaxed ever. Though, the biggest win to living alone was all the extra study time she had totally uninterrupted. 

Sakura took a sip of her hot chocolate, “So I was thinking about wearing this long brown dress for the party.”

Ino choked on her drink, “What?!” she sputtered, “Brown! Long! You can’t be serious!”

Sakura smiled into her mug, bingo. “Yea, it has these long sleeves with brown lace trim,” she continued.

Ino actually paled at the description, “How could you ever think of wearing something like that? It sounds hideous,” she stated blinking at Sakura like she was suddenly a stranger.

“Well, I could use a little help if you want to go look in my closet with me,” Sakura said.

“A little help?” Ino said as she got up and headed to the bedroom to investigate the offered closet. Sakura got up and followed, internally laughing as Ino kept muttering things to herself about brown and lace never being a good thing. She had actually bought a very pretty red dress during her lunch break earlier that she knew Ino would fawn over and insist she wear. Though, the fact that Ino had bought the long sleeved brown dress as an option was disturbing, did she really have that little faith in Sakuras’ abilities to dress herself?

Ino had the doors thrown open and was already flipping through the hangers, silently vetoing, occasionally a slight nod would happen before she would take it out and toss whatever it was on the bed.

“You bitch! You went shopping without me!” she yelled when she got to the red dress, pulling it out and holding it accusingly at Sakura.

“Yea, I did today during lunch,” Sakura shrugged. “It was so worth it though to see the look on your face! I can’t believe you thought I would wear a brown lacy bag!”

“I can’t believe you would lie to me about fashion! Is nothing sacred with you?” Ino laughed.

“I knew you’d like this red when I saw it. I got some cute shoes to match,” Sakura said reaching under her bed for the shoe box.

“Well, the red does clash a little with your hair, but if we put it up you’ll look great. Oooo I love those!” she squealed when she saw the shoes. Black high heels were Inos’ weakness, the added glitter on them was just overkill. “How can you say you’re not interested in anything right now when you picked such a hot outfit to wear?!” Ino accused.

“Just because I’m interested in my schooling does not mean I have to show up looking like I don’t care about my life, plus I’m sort of trying to live a little still,” Sakura replied. The conversation she had with Tsunade was still on her mind since yesterday. If she was being honest with herself, she did miss some aspects of her life before Sasuke. She missed these parties with Ino and the fun of getting dressed up and doing their make up together. It was nice to occasionally put aside her studies and live a little.

“I love that you just said that because I think I have the perfect idea for you!” Ino said, latching on to Sakuras’ momentary lapse.

“What are you talking about?” Sakura asked wearily.

“Look, I know you don’t want to date anyone right now because its ‘too time consuming’ or some bullshit, so, wait hear me out, I think you should make a profile on one of those dating sites and have like an online boyfriend!” Ino just kept smiling and nodding at her like it was the greatest idea ever even though Sakura was looking more horrified by the second.

“You realize that an online relationship is probably even more work because its all mental and emotional connection right? There’s no physical intimacy, you have to intellectually stimulate one another,” Sakura said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“Exactly!” Ino agreed, “Whomever you match up with on there will have to be able to seduce that big brain of yours so you know it’ll work out!”

Seeing that she wasn’t going to win this side of the argument, “Ok, but what if he’s not attractive?” 

“I mean I could see that as being a problem, but if he’s appealed to your brain and you’re totally compatible then what do looks matter? Or are you saying you’re shallow?” Ino challenged.

“Ino. Come on. I do not have time for a relationship of any kind, in person, online, or long distance. I barely have time for this stuff,” Sakura said motioning to the dresses on her bed.

“Yes, but if it is important then you make the time Sakura. I think this is important, and I think you should make the time. At the very least, maybe you could make a new friend. Sasuke was not a good boyfriend, much less a good friend to you. You need to see that someone can be both of those for you. You need to have someone make the time for you. Please just give it a try,” Ino said looking her in the eyes.

Damn Ino and her persuasive superpowers, Sakura was actually thinking about it. “Fine, I’ll make a profile. BUT. I’m not going to do anything with it until after I’ve gotten settled in school work, you’ve got to give me a couple of weeks. Deal?”

“Heck yes!” Ino shrieked. “Since we’ve got everything set for the party let’s go make it now!” she yelled as she headed back to the living room leaving Sakura wondering how she got talked into all that mess.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long break! We had three weeks off to enjoy some family time but I'm back!

Sakura woke up to her alarm, her head throbbed as she reached to turn it off. She was momentarily fuzzy as to why she would have woken up with a headache when she cringed remembering the dating profile Ino had coerced her into making the night before. Even more cringe worthy was the handle Ino had made up for her while she was setting things up, Cherry_Bomb, how obnoxious and embarrassing. The entire thing seemed extremely juvenile and Sakura felt ridiculous putting herself on a website like she was selling something.

Ino did make some good points while she was filling out the questionnaire which did calm Sakuras’ nerves about the entire thing. Online dating meant that you could really get to know a person before meeting face to face, it vetted a lot of the creeps if you didn’t meet right away. It also meant that she wouldn’t have to move her schedule around a ton for social events like dinner dates, Ino was side eying the heck out of her for turning down free food but to each their own. She reminded her that if she were picky with her matches then she was sure to find someone to spend quality time with. Sakura was adamant about putting in her description that she wasn’t just looking for a good time, but a lasting friendship. Ino had pretended to gag but typed it in anyway.

Sakura had tried to wash away her lingering doubt in an extra hot shower, taking extra time to stretch out her muscles in the heat. Her headache had mostly gone by the time she had gotten her coffee and school things together to head to work. She had grabbed her gym bag on the way out the door completely on auto pilot. She was halfway to the library when she realized that it was Thursday and she still hadn’t made a solid decision about going to hot yoga today, though the fact that she had her bag with her meant she should probably just go.

Ino had been so distracted with the dating profile that she had forgotten to hassle Sakura about Kakashi more. She’d been appalled that Sakura would not relent to putting an actual photo of herself on her bio. “It works both ways, Sakura,” she’d reminded her. Sakura had just shrugged at her because she honestly didn’t care at all about this and felt it was a waste of her time. But now that it was in her head, she wondered if Kakashi would be surprised she came to class again. Would he want to talk? Did she want to talk? Why was she worrying about this? She was actually contemplating asking what program he was in before she blushed and stopped that trail of thinking. This was not going to be a thing. The dating profile was not going to be a thing. She was perfectly fine on her own she scolded herself as she walked into the library to start her shift.

~~~

Kakashi took his helmet off and ran his fingers through his hair to get it to fluff back out. Last night had been ridiculous and he still had a headache that he couldn’t wait to sweat out in the sauna. Guy had not taken NO for an answer and insisted on shutting down the bar on his first night back. Kakashi wasn’t one to go out to bars but his friend had been gone all summer for competitions and he really couldn’t turn him down. The amount of enthusiasm Guy had was contagious and Kakashi always felt himself drawn in and able to really relax when he was around. So he’d stayed at the bar and drank a little more than usual, talked far too much about himself, and overall woke up in a weird head space.

He pulled out his phone to check the time, his class didn’t start for another hour. His feet started toward the reflection pond before he even realized where he was headed. Hanging out with Guy was always fun, but this time, it was different. He could tell that something was bothering Kakashi and hadn’t let up until he’d gotten it out in the open. But, now that he’d said all his thoughts out loud, Kakashi felt like he couldn’t stuff them all back down again. It had been three years since the accident but it was the anniversary of it just the same. His best friends were gone, Guy knew all that, and he could also tell that Kakashi had been distancing himself from everyone and throwing himself into his work.

He’d actually gotten Kakashi to admit that he was lonely before he clammed up and said he needed to get home. Kakashi shook his head, he’d have to remember not to accept any more of Guys’ challenges at the bar, drinking was not his thing. He stood staring out at the water, the fountain in the middle making ripples in the pond all the way out to the edge. The random snippets of chatter around him blended in with the fountain noise, it was relaxing and helped him take his mind off the day. Kakashi stood, still, staring, rolling all the things he’d said around in his head for the better part of thirty minutes when something pink caught his attention. It was Sakura, she was on the other side of the reflection pond, leaving the library. Did she live in the library? He thought to himself absently. She was looking down at her phone as she walked, paying no attention to anyone. Is she going to the gym? Kakashi realized that HE should actually probably be going to the gym as well, especially if she was going to be there. Wait. What? He slowly followed her, far enough back that it wasn’t creepy, though he felt like a creep just the same.

She was waiting at the crosswalk again, stopped at the light, when he strolled up next to her. “So, we meet again, Sakura,” he said softly to her. 

She jumped, smashed the side button on her phone, and turned to him her face as pink as her hair. “Kakashi! Hi. Do you always just appear behind people or just me?”

He couldn’t help but laugh, “No, not usually, it just seems to be a funny coincidence with you. Back for yoga?”

“Actually, I am. I had never done hot yoga before, but I’d never been so relaxed in my life. I have a full evening on Tuesdays and Thursdays and this is a nice treat heading into that,” she said smiling.

The light turned and they started to cross the street to the gym together. He watched her out of the corner of his eye as she put her phone away and fidgeted with her bags. “What’s your major?” he asked.

“Um, its complicated. Biomedical sciences, but I’m specializing in neuroscience and minoring in psychology,” she winced as she explained.

His eyes widened a little, “Wow, that’s…a lot.”

“Yea, it really is, but I’m in my last year. I honestly can’t wait to finish my applications to grad school now that I have my thesis mapped out,” she stopped suddenly, “Sorry, I can go on for a while about school, its pretty much my favorite thing.”

He smiled as he held the door open for her, “Hey, I’m not judging, I’m in my last year too. Graduate program, but still. Anyway, I’ll see you in class.” 

“Thanks,” she said as she walked off toward the locker room. He turned toward the office, thoughts consumed by their interaction. What was she looking at on her phone that was so embarrassing? Was she thanking him for not judging her or holding the door, both? He sighed to himself, this, this was why he avoided people, he was not good with interaction.

As he walked into the office to get to the staff locker rooms he saw Guy and his student Lee talking with Tenten, laughing about something. Guy of course waved him over, “Glad to see you made it!”

“Remind me next time not to go along with your drinking challenges,” Kakashi laughed.

“Oh, you’re just out of practice, you need to get out more and I think I know just the thing! Tenten didn’t you say your friends sorority was having a welcome back party this weekend?” Guy asked.

“Totally! You all should come, here, let me get you the address,” she said grabbing a sticky note and writing the information down.

Kakashi took the note when she held it out to him, “I don’t know, aren’t I a little old to be going out to Greek housing?”

“Not at all, we all go here, don’t be weird,” she laughed.

Kakashi raised his eyebrows and looked at Guy, “So you’re going to this?”

He shrugged, “The whole team is, why not?”

“Alright, I’ll see you later, I’m late to class,” Kakashi said with a wave as he headed back to change.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy!

Kakashi pulled up late to the sorority house, the lawn was crowded with people drinks in hand already enjoying themselves. He sighed, if it weren’t for Guys’ nagging he wouldn’t have come at all, but the ten texts the last hour and he promised he’d make an appearance. He was pretty surprised that this party was being held so soon after the start of school, and that it was a fund raising event, but the sign said it was being held to raise money for a program that helped soldiers with PTSD get service animals and he couldn’t deny that was an excellent cause. 

He walked through the house looking for any sign of someone he knew, slowly making his way to the kitchen. Kakashi noticed a blonde in the corner watching him, he wondered if he stuck out somehow, could she tell he was older? He stepped into the kitchen and out of her gaze, grabbed himself a bottle of water, and made his way to the back patio. He found a spot by the fence and settled down, pulled a book out of his back pocket and started reading. If Guy was worried about him he was sure to send him yet another text, better to wait outside than continue to be stared at.

~~~

In the living room, Ino had watched Kakashi head out back, calculating how she should approach the rest of the evening. Sakura was still upstairs but she had no idea that he was there and Ino wasn’t sure she was going to say anything. She knew Sakura, and currently her friend was adamant that she was not going to date. The dating profile was one thing, no actual commitment was needed on her part, but if this thing with Kakashi could grow organically there was potential. Tenten had said that she didn’t know him well, he kept to himself and was very dedicated to his program. He read all the time, or had a notebook and was writing in the gym down time. She’d told Ino that he’d been working there the last five years but never really let anyone get close, Guy was the only one he spent time with as far as she knew. Ino felt that if she could get them in the same area, their mutual school interests would get them talking and the rest would be cake. Therefore, it was show time.

~~~

Sakura was standing in front of Inos’ mirror pulling at her dress, it hadn’t seemed so short when she tried it on the other day. As she was tugging it down, the top was also pulling lower which was not helping her feel more dressed at all. Sighing, she eyed the hoodie she wore over. 

“Don’t even think about it!” Ino yelled as she walked into the room and saw Sakura reaching for her jacket. “You did not buy a new dress and heels to cover up in your school sweater.”

“No, I didn’t. But, this feels weird. I haven’t dressed up since before, I don’t even know if I can walk in these shoes anymore,” Sakura complained.

“Its like riding a bike, you don’t forget,” Ino replied while rummaging through her make up drawers. “Here, wear this one,” she said handing a lipstick to Sakura.

Sakura eyed the shade, Ladies Night, as she put it on. It matched the red of her dress almost perfectly, though she wasn’t sure she was confident to pull off both the red dress and such a bold red lip. Ino had pulled her hair back into a tight bun, which made her feel even more exposed. “Are you sure I’m not over dressed for just a welcome back thing?” she asked.

“Sakura, you look amazing, stop doubting yourself. But, if you feel too uncomfortable, just grab some water and go to the back yard, it isn’t crowded,” Ino suggested. “I’ll come get you when things wind down.”

“Thanks,” Sakura said smiling at her friend.

As she walked down the stairs, taking extra time to make sure she didn’t trip, she wondered why Ino was suddenly so accommodating her shyness. She watched Ino as she went back to the front of the living room where Sai was, snake her arm around him and kiss his cheek. She whispered something to him as she pulled away and he smiled at her nodding. Sakuras’ heart clinched and she hurried out the back door. Ino had said it wasn’t crowded and that was an understatement, she didn’t see anyone outside at all.

It had been so long since she’d sat out there, it used to be her favorite spot at the house. She’d bring all her books and sit by the small fountain and read for hours. As she walked around the bush to find her seat she paused in realization that someone was already there. He looked up at her as her heels clicked on the stone path, his eyes widened in recognition and he smiled at her. “Fancy seeing you here, Sakura.”

Sakuras’ eyes were wide, like a deer caught in headlights, “What are you doing here?”

He chuckled at her, “I’m enjoying the party, of course.”

“I’m sorry, that was rude of me, you just surprised me. You don’t seem like you’re one for parties is all,” she recovered her face and gave him a small smile.

“Well, I AM hiding in the back yard reading,” he shrugged. “What about you?”

“Oh, um, this is my house. I mean, I don’t actually live here anymore, but its my sorority. I figured I should be here to show support,” she said as she walked to the chair across from him and sat down.

“Interesting, I didn’t peg you for the Greek life, you spend far too much time in the library,” he teased her.

Sakura felt the heat rising in her cheeks, “To be fair, I work in the library, but I like being well rounded. I wanted the full college experience, obviously. I wasn’t at all pushed into joining this sorority because of my best friend,” she laughed.

He nodded, “I can understand that, friends are important to you, that’s a good thing.”

Sakura looked down at his book, “What are you reading?”

It was Kakashis’ turn to blush, “Oh, um, nothing,” he mumbled as he moved to put it away.

The moonlight caught the cover, and Sakura squealed, “Oh my god, you are NOT reading that are you? You know that English professor, Jiraya, actually writes those!”

Kakashi coughed a little to hide his embarrassment. It wasn’t like him to care what other people thought of his literature so this awkward blushing was throwing him entirely off. “I actually am reading it, and no I didn’t know he wrote them. How do you know that?”

“He and my Aunt grew up together, he ghost writes them or uses a pen name or something so none of it is credited back to him so he can save face with the University. Though, I’ve heard he’s one of the best English professors in the country so I doubt they’d do anything even if it were public knowledge,” Sakura shrugged. “You’re full of surprises tonight.”

“Well, you clearly don’t have good taste in books, what is it you spend all that time reading in the library?” Kakashi asked, trying to regain control of his emotions.

“Like I said, I mostly spend time working, but I mostly read things pertaining to my major. I have to submit and defend my thesis this year so I’ve mostly been working on that.”

“Its only the first week of school,” Kakashi chuckled, “What are you doing your thesis on?”

It was Sakuras’ turn to be a little embarrassed, in her experience people didn’t really care about her school work and got bored very quickly when she started explaining things that interested her, but Kakashi seemed engaged in the conversation so she went with it. “Um, I’m exploring the idea of our behavior. I’ve been researching various developmental psychology theories, nature vs nurture, why we do the things we do. I’m curious if right and wrong on some level is in our genetic brain make up or if its learned, things along that path.”

“Ah, I can see why you’d need to spend so much time reading then, those are fascinating concepts. I, personally, feel its a little of both. I think it also depends on where and how you were raised. A person could be raised and taught that it is totally right to raid a nearby town for their goods so they wouldn’t see it as stealing and therefore wrong. There’s a context to it all,” Kakashi replied.

Sakura smiled, “There is, yes, but you can also take those same people and show them, teach them, a different way. So, one could argue that the brain is wired to accept certain things as right and wrong. One could not learn something new if the ability wasn’t there all along.”

“Hm, I do see your point. It brings into question the entire concept of free will, in a way. The larger question of if we are governed by our genetics or if we actually make the choices.”

“Exactly. I haven’t entirely decided my stance on it yet either. On the one hand I’d like to think that we all make our choices based on experience and our knowledge, that we’re open to learning and adapting our moral compasses as we grow as humans. However, I feel like as we grow and adapt, our challenges also adapt and we fall into the trap of history repeating itself over the ages. Things seem to essentially boil down to the same issues again and again.”

Kakashi nodded. “I’ve often pointed out the history repeating itself in my studies as well. I’ve often wondered if it should be considered actual repetition of historical events or more of a similar recurrence. Perhaps it comes down to an argument of semantics,” he laughed.

“Are you a History major then?” Sakura asked.

“I have my undergrad in History and I’m currently finishing up my Masters this year. I’m slightly stuck after that though as they don’t offer a doctoral program here and I’m still not sure what I want to do when I grow up,” he said with a smile.

“So you’re following the professional student route then,” Sakura teased.

“Yea, who knows, maybe I’ll switch over to the English department?” he said with a wink.

Sakura laughed, “I do occasionally tutor and proof read papers, I’d be more than happy to help you make that switch.”

“Oh, so you’re familiar with this type of literature that you’d feel comfortable offering professional opinion on a piece?” he replied, his tone deeper and curious.

“I suppose you’ll have to write something and see,” Sakura replied back with a smirk.

“You know, I just may take you up on that,” Kakashi said looking her in the eyes.

“AH! There you are! You’ve been hiding from me, Kakashi!” Guy yelled from the path, “I wasn’t sure you were going to come.”

Kakashi sighed, “I told you I would come, I’m a man of my word.”

Guy walked up to the table where they were seated and looked at Sakura, “And who is this stunning vision of youth you’ve been entertaining?”

Sakura raised her eyebrows at him wondering just what kind of person uses phrases like ‘vision of youth’. Kakashi realized she wasn’t going to say anything and decided he should introduce her. “Guy, this is Sakura, this is her sorority house. Sakura, Guy, he and I grew up together.”

“What a pleasure to meet you, Sakura” Guy said flashing her a smile.

“Sakura! Tsunade is looking for you!” Ino yelled as she walked out into the back yard, stopping mid step when she realized she was interrupting.

Sakura glared at Ino and rolled her eyes, “Why is she looking for me? You’re the one that invited her.”

Ino smirked seeing that her plan for Sakura had worked out, by her calculation they’d been out here talking for at least half an hour. “I’m not sure, she said something about life imitating work and wanting to check on you.”

Sakura groaned, “It was nice to meet you Guy,” she said as she stood up. Smiling she turned back to Kakashi, “I’ll see you later, thanks for keeping me company.”

“Anytime,” he said smiling back.

Kakashi watched Sakura grab her friend and drag her back into the house, whisper yelling at her the entire time. Guy sat down in the chair that was now empty and just smiled at Kakashi.

“Well, you’re being weirder that usual,” Kakashi told him. 

“There’s nothing weird about appreciating beauty when we are lucky enough to be near it. Have you given any more thought to our talk the other night?” Guy asked.

Kakashi feigned ignorance, “What talk would that be?”

“I’ve given it thought and come to the conclusion that along with needing to get out more, you need to make more friends,” Guy said, ignoring Kakashis’ question entirely. 

“Guy, I’m fine. I have my work, school. I have friends. I’m just a private person, I don’t need to go out and do things like you do.”

“I heard you talking to Sakura, are you going to see her more?” Guy asked.

“I don’t know. She took my yoga class, we just keep running into each other, it wasn’t a planned thing. Look, I see where you’re taking this and I don’t want to start anything. I’m probably leaving after I graduate anyway and it wouldn’t be fair to anyone,” Kakashi tried to reason with his friend.

“Kakashi, you’re losing precious time living in the past and not moving on. You need to make new connections, if they mean something then space won’t matter. If you don’t want to spend time face to face, you could always try a written approach,” Guy hinted.

“A written approach? What is that even supposed to mean?” Kakashi asked.

“The online scene, make a profile, weed out what you’re interested in or not. You don’t even have to meet them, just make some friends,” Guy shrugged it off trying to sound casual about the suggestion.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow at him, “I am really not looking for an online girlfriend, Guy.”

“Wasn’t it nice having a conversation with Sakura? You seemed to be enjoying yourself more than I’ve seen in years. I wish so much happiness for you, but you seem to not want to let yourself get there. Maybe online would give you the distance to start so you can learn to be close to someone again?” Guy argued.

Kakashi sighed, he obviously wasn’t getting anywhere he wanted in this conversation. “I need to go feed Pakkun, I’ll think about what you said, ok?”

“That’s all I ask my friend, thanks for coming out tonight,” Guy said.

Kakashi left Guy at the table and went back into the house. He scanned the room for red before really realizing what he was doing but was disappointed when he didn’t see her. She’d left in such a hurry, should HE have told her she looked stunning? Was he sad he didn’t give her his number, what if she didn’t want it? He did enjoy their conversation, Guy was too observant for his own good sometimes. He scoffed internally at the thought of making a dating profile when he didn’t even want to date. Who would actually go on one of those sites for friendship and not a booty call? Probably no one. 

As he made his way outside to his bike he looked up at the house, one of the windows at the top had the blinds open and the light was on. He could see inside and to his surprise he saw Sakura. She was taking her hair down and looked like she was arguing with someone. Instant curiosity blossomed in his head, who was she arguing with? Her blonde friend? And just how well did she know Dr. Senju that the woman was going to a sorority party to talk to her about school work? He laughed to himself, maybe Guy was right and he needed to get out more, perhaps he would make a profile.


	8. Chapter 8

Kakashi stared at what he’d just written blankly. ‘I like dogs, long walks in the woods, and reading.’ He rubbed his hand over his face and shook his head, this was ridiculous. On the one hand, by making this profile he could tell his friend that he’d put himself out there, and on the other, his profile was so lame he’d never have to bother with anyone. Win win. A small part of him wondered if this continued effort of self sabotage was because he was scared to be close to someone again, but he smothered those thoughts down as quickly as they surfaced. 

He clicked ‘done’ and smiled at his extremely blank profile. Kakashi refused to put a photo up to make it even less appealing to anyone, plus he couldn’t imagine if someone he knew saw it. To be fair, the profile was done with so little effort he could just play it off as a drunken social experiment, but still the thought of anyone knowing it was him was embarrassing. As soon as his profile was finished, the site started offering him profiles to browse, profiles that were in the area no less. He raised his eyebrows at his phone, he wasn’t aware that it was location based and was immediately even more grateful he’d decided to not use a photo.

Kakashi scrolled through the names, laughing harder with each one. UseYourIllusi0n, Cherry_Bomb, Wood_Master…he was practically cackling to himself in bed, shaking so hard that Pakkun glared at him and walked away. Unfortunately none of those stellar names came with profile pictures either, he sighed to himself as he clicked on Wood_Master contemplating if he was going to regret his decisions.

Male  
Looking for personal companionship  
Single  
Interested in plants and wood working

Kakashi blinked. Apparently he wasn’t the only one who was leaving all to the imagination, he also had a sneaking suspicion he knew who this profile belonged to now that he saw he wasn’t using the handle as an innuendo. He hit back and glanced at the other names listed, wondering if he could perhaps figure out who they belonged to. Scrolling up to the top of the list he started clicking on profiles thinking he’d just found his new favorite game.

Cherry_Bomb  
Female  
Looking for FRIEND  
Single  
I like big books and I cannot lie. Coffee and contemplation. I hit like a girl, ask me how.

The fact that she had ‘friend’ in all capital letters made him laugh. His thumb hovered over the message button as he considered his options. He wasn’t sure who this person was, but she seemed interesting enough and was looking for a FRIEND after all, so he clicked it. The cursor blinked, waiting for him to type. He smirked to himself as he wrote out the most ridiculous question he could think of and hit send.

Kakashi threw himself back on his bed, the smirk still on his face. He was not prepared for the amount of enjoyment this companion app was giving him, and he hadn’t even met anyone…or had he? His smirk intensified as he looked over at his bookshelf. Maybe tomorrow he’d head over to the science department and see if Yamato wanted to grab some lunch.

~~~

Sakura unlocked her door and walked into her dark apartment. She saw her microwave light said it was 3am. Sighing she flipped the lights on and started to make coffee. Her first week of her senior year was over and she was already staying out late on the weekends. She’d put her dress and heels away, washed her makeup off, and sat down with her fresh coffee before she bothered to take her phone out. The notification was blinking when the screen lit up and she just stared at it.

CopyNinja has sent a message!

She swiped the notice and slowly read the message: What’s the biggest book you’ve read?

Seriously? Her eyebrow shot up as she backed out of the text and went to the profile.

CopyNinja  
Male  
Looking for ? I’m lost on the path of life.  
Single  
I like dogs, long walks in the woods, and reading.

Her eyebrow stayed in the upright position as she shook her head, his profile was lacking a photo just like hers. She backed out of his profile and clicked back on the message. It was three in the morning, she’d just had an annoying discussion with Tsunade, who had actually interrupted…something, she wasn’t sure what, with Kakashi. Sakura was feeling feisty, so she hit ‘reply’, why not have a little fun?

'By biggest, do you mean length or thickness? They vary depending on soft or hard…cover.'

She hit send before she could second guess herself and turned off her notifications. She felt embarrassed and immature and wanted to squash those feelings as quickly as possible. She pulled her laptop out of her bag and started outlining her thesis project with no intentions of sleeping as she’d made a full pot of coffee.

Sakura woke up to a pounding sound and realized it was someone at the door. She sat up and wiped the drool off her chin and looked at her phone. Apparently Ino had been calling her for the last hour, which would also explain the pounding at the door. She’d forgotten the note about the buildings buzzer having broken the day before so Ino was able to just let herself in it would seem.

“I’m coming!” Sakura shouted as she got up and hurried to let Ino in before she woke up the entire floor.

“What the hell, why aren’t you answering your phone?” Ino demanded when Sakura opened the door.

“I turned my notifications off last night when I got home so I could work on my thesis without interruptions. I fell asleep on my notes apparently,” Sakura said heading back into the kitchen to make more coffee. “Why are you over here so early? I didn’t expect you out of bed until at least 11.”

“Sai had to leave early to catch the light for a project and I couldn’t go back to sleep. I can’t believe you came home and started working on school,” Ino said.

“Yea well, I can’t believe you and Tsunade teamed up on me last night,” Sakura shot back, clearly getting annoyed again.

“What did I interrupt outside then? You didn’t seem to be having an awful time. Was that Kakashi?” Ino asked leaning forward with a smirk.

Sakura narrowed her eyes at her friend, “It was Kakashi, and we were just having a discussion about some of my thoughts for my thesis, not that its really any of your business.”

Ino stared at Sakura, “You seriously got all dressed up to sit outside and discuss school? I can’t take you anywhere.”

“I told you before I’m not interested in dating, I’m not going to go out of my way to be something I’m not because you and Tsunade think I’m too focused on the wrong parts of my future,” Sakura snapped.

“O-kay. Moving aside from that, was it at least a fun conversation?” Ino asked with fake innocence.

Sakura rolled her eyes, “If you’re asking if I enjoyed talking to him, then yes I did. It was nice to hold a conversation with someone that actually seemed interested in what I was talking about,” she paused wondering if she should give Ino more ammunition. “I also found out that he’s a History major.”

Ino wrinkled her nose, “How boringly unexpected, what with the hot yoga and the bike, I’d really expected something more cool.”

“I don’t think its boring,” Sakura said, more to herself than to Ino as she started putting her books away and clearing the table off.

Ino scoffed, “Of course YOU wouldn’t, you practically live in the library these days. You need to live a little more so you won’t think things like being a history major aren’t boring…speaking of living, did you finish your profile?”

Sakura looked back at her, “I thought it was done when you’d left.”

“Sakura, seriously? You published it with those, what, three sentences? Have you even had any looks?” Ino asked.

“As a matter of fact, I had a message last night,” Sakura said blushing slightly as she remembered the conversation. It was even more embarrassing now that she was fully awake.

“WHAT!!! Let me see!!! Did you reply?” Ino shrieked at her.

Sakura picked her phone up and handed it to Ino, “Its pretty juvenile, I can’t believe I said that.”

Ino opened the app and looked through the exchange. “Oh my god, you go girl! I can’t believe you said that either, who knew you had that sense of humor hiding in that big forehead of yours?”

“Thanks so much, Ino,” Sakura snarked back at her.

“Lighten up. He hasn’t replied back yet. Are you going to actually keep talking to this guy?” Ino asked.

“I have no idea, Ino. It’s literally been one exchange, I guess we’ll have to wait and see what he says? I mean, I said I wanted a friend, not a booty call or whatever this looks like it could head toward…I’m not sure,” Sakura replied.

“Well I guess the ball is in his court now then,” Ino smiled.

~~~

Kakashi woke up to Pakkun licking his face and groaned when he realized how bright it was outside. He grabbed his phone to look at the time and saw he had a notification from the companion app. It would appear as though Cherry_Bomb had actually replied to his message. He clicked it open, surprised at how eager he was to see her response. As he read it, his eyes widened and he smiled, so she had a fun sense of humor like himself. He found he was glad that she’d replied rather than blocking him for the ridiculous text. How to reply though, was the bigger question. He wanted to find out who she was, since she’d taken the bait he had to approach this with a little more thought. She’d specifically said she wanted a friend, so he couldn’t continue down this double talk for very long or she’d cut him off. He shrugged to himself, maybe he could do actual friend, what was there to lose.

‘I was leaving it to the ladies choice as to how to approach the question, but I see where I could have left it too opened ended. I’ll go first, some of the longest I’ve read are War and Peace or Romance of the Three Kingdoms. I have been known to open a comic or two, I’m not overly picky when it comes to reading as long as the plot is good and theres ample imagery. You?’

He hit send, satisfied with his more toned down response. It wasn’t that he disliked the flirting innuendo, it had just been a while. He hadn’t been able to joke around with someone for far too long, that small talk he’d had with Sakura seemed to awaken his longing for more. More friends, more connection, more…he wasn’t sure. He picked up Pakkun and sat him on the floor before heading to the kitchen to get the dog some food and himself some coffee. This school year was already proving to be one of the more interesting ones, as it was his last here he supposed it wouldn’t be so bad to go out with a bang.


	9. Chapter 9

Sakura had spent all weekend outlining her thesis and purposely ignoring her phone with any notifications it may or may not hold for her. She wasn’t entirely sure what she wanted to do about CopyNinja at all, though Ino was more excited than she had any right to be about it. She’d spent Saturday afternoon lecturing Sakura about being open minded to the possibilities while they were out getting groceries. The only time Ino let up was when Sai called and asked if she was busy later, then the conversation shifted to their date later. Sakura was relieved that she had all day Sunday alone to work on school without social distractions. She could be an outgoing person, but the interactions left her drained and she longed for time to recharge on her own.

Now her alarm was going off and it was time to start another week. Like clockwork, Ino banged on her door so they could walk to kick boxing together, and Sakura once again had coffee for them both prepared. This was her idea of perfection, simple routine, no fuss, and nothing unexpected.

“I finally finished tallying all the funds we raised on Friday, we actually smashed our record this time,” Ino mentioned as they were walking across the campus.

“Oh yea? What was the goal again? Just 1000$ like before?” Sakura asked.

“Yea, but we made it to 2356$! Can you believe that?! I guess the idea of puppies was really appealing to everyone this year,” Ino gushed.

“I mean who doesn’t love puppies, and the money will help train them to help people who really need it,” Sakura agreed.

“I’ve been thinking about some more fundraisers we can do…” Ino started.

“Please tell me they aren’t all parties?” Sakura interrupted.

“Rude. And no, they aren’t ‘all parties’. You’ll be happy to know that the next one we decided on will actually be a miles pledge for walking around campus,” Ino said in a mock offended tone.

“Well, that actually sounds like fun, who is it for?” Sakura asked as she pushed the button to cross over to the gym.

“That hasn’t been entirely decided yet. We have a list of possibilities but nothing finalized. I was wondering if you’d take a look at the recipients and fundraiser ideas and match them up. You did such a good job with it last year,” Ino said smiling at Sakura.

“Suck up,” Sakura accused as they walked into the building together.

~~~

Kakashi was moody, moreso than usual, and he didn’t like it. He’d spent the rest of his weekend grading papers, the first ones of the term were always abysmal, which didn’t help his mood. His phone pinged and he realized as he eagerly grabbed for it to see what the notification was that he was being silly over her non response. She, who didn’t have a name, had been on his mind since he’d sent the reply. It had been two days and nothing. Obviously, he was being ridiculous because two days is nothing when two people are literal strangers, but he had quickly become attached to the idea of a new friend.

His notification was a blurry gym photo from Guy. Kakashi shook his head trying to decipher the nonsense his friend had sent him, giving up he messaged asking him what it was.

Guy: Isn’t it the beautiful blossom you were speaking to at the Delta Rho house?

Kakashi went back to the photo, reassessing the blurry factor and realized there was a tiny blob of pink. Guy needed a new phone.

Kakashi: You realize you look like the biggest creeper taking photos at the gym, right?

Guy: I was well hidden my friend, don’t worry!

Kakashi rolled his eyes, Guy had to see how that made it worse. Laughing to himself he rolled out of bed and did a mental tally of what classes were going on at the moment and narrowed it down to Tai Chi (Guys’ class), barre, or kick boxing. He honestly couldn’t tell from the photo but hoped with all his soul she wasn’t in Guys’ class. Guy had been trying to get him to go out with all manner of people and could already see the man trying to get Sakura to go out with him. He imagined the entire conversation would be extremely embarrassing for her and him, and he did NOT want that. 

He showered in record speed and made it to campus within 40 minutes, which was quick given all the morning business traffic. Walking into the gym he made a quick trip by the office and then went to the classes. Sighing in relief he saw that Guy was still teaching and there wasn’t a pink head in sight, he was in the process of turning to check for the barre class when he saw her across the way coming out of kick boxing.

Sakura was laughing at something her blonde friend was saying to Tenten, her face was almost as pink as her hair and she was trying to make them be quiet but clearly failing. Kakashi stood frozen, the debate between staying unnoticed to find out what they were laughing about and the other surprising want to talk were battling it out when she looked up and saw him. He didn’t realize it was possible but she turned an even deeper shade of pink and the conversation around her quickly stopped.

“Kakashi! What are you doing here so early?” Tenten asked with a chuckle still in her tone.

“Oh you know, Guy wanted to grab a bite after his class,” Kakashi shrugged.

“Right, well I’ll catch you guys later,” Tenten said to them all as she turned and went into the office.

Sakura was fiddling with her bag, trying to fit her water bottle into one of the side pockets, when her blonde friend winked at him, what on earth was that about Kakashi wondered.

“Sakura, I just got a text from Sai, he needs my help in a shoot, I’ve gotta run. I’ll email you those lists later!” she said quickly and practically ran out of the gym.

Sakura stood in the hall staring after her for a moment before looking up at Kakashi, her face had gone back to its normal shade at this point.

“Well, that was awkward,” she said.

“Yea, your friend seems a little hyper,” Kakashi chuckled.

“That’s Ino, and yea she must have forgotten we had agreed to go pick up some breakfast,” Sakura said in an irritated tone.

“Oh, that’s unfortunate. What were you planning on getting?” Kakashi asked.

“Nothing fancy, I just wanted to at least grab some more coffee and a sandwich, I have class in a couple hours. Mondays are busy,” she replied.

“Well…you wanna go grab a bite? With me instead?” he asked a little hesitation in his voice.

“I thought you were meeting up with your friend?” she asked.

“I mean I was, but his class is running over. I haven’t had coffee yet, so I’m up for anything that fixes that,” he laughed. “He won’t mind, I hadn’t actually confirmed I would be here.”

Sakuras’ stomach rumbled and she turned pink again, “Well, I’m hungry so if you’re sure…”

“Of course,” he smiled and motioned for her to lead the way.

They walked out of the gym and through the parking lot in silence. The sun was just rising over the tree line and the sky was painted in oranges and pinks. Kakashi looked down at her, “So, how was the rest of your weekend?”

“Oh, you know, just worked on my thesis, went grocery shopping, nothing super exciting really. You?” she asked.

“Mine was equally thrilling, grading papers, thesis work, the usual. Did you have a particular breakfast in mind?” he suddenly asked.

“Honestly no, we usually just go to the cafe on campus, if you would prefer something else that’s fine, I just still need to shower and my class is at 9,” she said.

“There’s a new food truck by the lake, it shouldn’t be more than a 20 minute walk or we could take my bike,” he offered.

She considered for a moment, “The bike is fine.”

He smiled, “Good choice!”

They continued to the parking garage, he handed her his helmet as he started the bike. She put it on, climbed on behind him, and put her arms around his waist. He smiled to himself noticing she wasn’t as outwardly nervous this time, but her grip on him said another story. He went slow again, this time because of morning school rush traffic. They still made it to the other lot in five minutes and she hopped off rather quickly.

They placed their coffee and food orders and waited in silence. Sakura was staring out over the lake watching the ducks and turtles calmly. Kakashi sighed and realized that he fell right into Guys trap because he was in fact out with Sakura alone. Guy was clearly more devious than Kakashi realized which was surprising because he’d known the man since they were kids. Their orders were finished quickly and soon they were both walking around the lake sipping coffee and eating their sandwiches in silence. 

Sakura was the first to break it, “So, how long have you had that bike?”

Kakashi smiled, “About three years now actually.”

“Wow, it still looks brand new. I would have never pegged you for a bike though,” she laughed.

“Well, it didn’t start out as mine, it was a gift from a friend and I like to keep it up in his memory,” Kakashi said looking hard at the lake.

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories,” Sakura quickly apologized.

“It’s fine, really, he taught me a lot,” he paused, “I like to keep him alive as much as I can.”

Sakura nodded, “I get that. I mean, keeping those we lost alive for us. I lost my parents when I was in highschool, its been years now but I keep a scrapbook for them of things I’ve done.”

Kakashi looked down at her, “I’m sure they’d love it.” They continued their circle of the lake in more silence. He didn’t want to continue and say that he’d grown up without parents and that’s why his friends meant so much to him. He didn’t want to be a sad story or feel like he was one upping her. He was honestly surprised at himself that he told her how he got his bike, he’d never told anyone that. She made him comfortable to the point that he didn’t mind having conversations rather than just speaking. Their silence was also pleasant during their walk, without forced talking.

As they finished their breakfast and the loop his phone pinged. She walked back up to the truck to throw away their trash and he checked his message which was of course from Guy asking if he enjoyed his breakfast date. He rolled his eyes and didn’t bother to reply. Sakura walked up to him and he held out his helmet for her again, “You’ll have to let me know where you want me to drop you off, I insist on giving you a ride home this time.”

She smiled, “When you leave campus from the gym just turn left at that light onto the main road, its the first apartment complex on the left.”

“Oh these are nice,” he said as they pulled up to the main building of her complex.

“Yea, when I decided to move out of the sorority house last year my Aunt insisted that I stay close,” Sakura said while she tried unsuccessfully to fix her hair in the reflection of the helmet.

“What’s the story with that by the way? I didn’t know you could just move out of those houses,” he asked.

“Oh, well, its a little embarrassing and dramatic really, so out of character for me. Ino and I got into an epic fight over a guy. I feel so ridiculous explaining it to you,” she laughed, “It honestly nearly ruined our friendship but it turned out he wasn’t worth it. I finally realized that Ino and I will always be friends but that I needed to figure things out for myself instead of trying to be something I’m not.”

“So you’re still allowed to be in the sorority?” he questioned.

“Totally, I still pay my dues and participate. Ino is actually sending over some of the next fundraiser ideas she wanted me to narrow down. Its hard to do that on top of everything else I do, but I enjoy staying busy,” she shrugged.

“How did the party hold up? It was for service animals, right?”

“Yup, we actually raised over two thousand, I’m going to set our next goal higher. It’ll be a walk a thon around the campus, I’m going to suggest it be to raise money for our clinic and counseling services if Ino doesn’t have that on her list already,” she said. “Anyway, thanks for keeping me company for breakfast, and for the ride. I’ll see you in yoga tomorrow,” she said with a smile.

“Yea, no problem. Let me know if you need any help with the fundraiser,” he said as he put the helmet on and started the bike up again.

“Will do!” She turned and walked up to the building and waved as she went inside.

He watched to make sure she was in her building before he drove away. Kakashi also had class at 9, the class he had been grading the papers for and he’d left at home in his mad dash to make sure Guy didn’t try and pawn him off on Sakura. He smiled to himself at the irony of the entire morning. He checked the time at the light and didn’t want to risk being super late to his class so they’d just have to wait an extra day for their grades. His smile widened when he realized he had just enough time to scheme up what he was going to do to Guy before he had to be at work.

**Author's Note:**

> Random idea I'm playing with, I'm going to try to update weekly as a challenge to get back to writing.


End file.
